Semi-Artificial Photosynthetic Machinery for Carbon Dioxide Capture and Conversion.

Producing value-added chemicals directly from CO2 powered by sunlight offers a sustainable approach to addressing both environmental and economic challenges. However, the inherent chemical stability of CO2 poses a grand challenge in achieving highly active and selective CO2 conversion. Herein, we develop a biohybrid semi-artificial photosynthetic system that integrates carbonic anhydrase (CA) and a CuZn nanozyme photosensitizer with a dendritic polymer (PPA) for the sustainable transformation of CO2 into dimethyl carbonate (DMC). The PPA-wrapped CA/CuZn can capture CO2 to form active intermediates. Through photo-induced charge transfer under visible light illumination, the CA/CuZn@PPA system achieves 100% selectivity for DMC production at room temperature and low CO2 pressure.